Re: The Official WWE Thread - Part 21

[Tomwin Lannister]

At Extreme rules MT Footbenoit tried to suck ME off

[Freeza]

Benoit match elimination chamber family members in each

[izzy]

Apparently, Booker T just said that, "Owen Hart didn't defy gravity."

Really? What a...... I'm shocked.

[Onyx]

Sandow pipebomb on RAW ffs.

Why is this guy in the midcard when he can cut a promo and has charisma yet guys who can barely cut a promo are main eventing.

Should go back to his old saviour gimmick but as a face and a proper main event push.

[Onyx]

Reigns vs Rollins vs Orton at Payback, pls go.

[silver]

Have the Bella twins really just gone face? After months of being bitches to everyone to suddenly expect to be crowd favourites overnight?

[Onyx]

Apparently there are no faces or heels in the divas division, according to a former writer.

When the WWE Universe waged a social media campaign two months ago asking WWE to give Divas a chance, Vince McMahon acknowledged their pleas and said to keep watching.

It was a 30-second Divas tag match on Raw that that sparked the outcry, and since then the women have been given more time in the ring.

What Vince apparently has failed to realized, however, is that to truly give Divas a chance, it's not just about longer matches. Like the men, the women need compelling story lines and clearly defined characters.

In those regards, WWE still has work to do, especially as it pertains to character development.

The combination of AJ Lee's retirement, Page going on hiatus and Naomi turning heel has left WWE with no babyface Divas (unless you count Natalya, who sometimes shows babyface traits but is part of a heel act with WWE Tag Team Champions Tyson Kidd and Cesaro).

To further muddy the Divas landscape, the Bella twins -- whose mean-girls act has made them the top heels in the division -- came across as babyfaces on Raw this past Monday.

I suppose I shouldn't be surprised by the questionable booking. During my time on the WWE creative team, we actually were told that there really are no babyfaces or heels in the Divas division. It was strongly implied that the Divas are all just a bunch of catty chicks, most of whom are mentally unstable.

A perfect example of that philosophy was the booking of the program between AJ and Paige last year. Instead of establishing a babyface and a heel, both characters acted heelish,

Their "frenemies" angle was more confusing than compelling. Thus, the rivalry between one of the most "over" Divas of all time and a heralded newcomer to the main roster wasn't nearly as good as it should have been.

The audience needs someone to root for. It's really not that complicated.

If the idea now is to get fans to cheer the Bellas -- and I'm honestly not sure if that's the case or not -- don't have them just show up on Raw one week acting nicer and wrestling a babyface style. Tell me a story. What circumstance has sparked this change in their personalities?

Speaking of the Bella twins, their reunion last year after Nikki had turned on Brie three months earlier is a textbook example of uninspired and illogical storytelling.

Nikki told Brie that she wished her twin had died in the womb and went on to demean her sister for a month due to a stipulation that made Brie her personal assistant. Yet at Survivor Series, Brie helped Nikki retain her Divas Championship.

Why did Brie do it? We were never given an explanation. That's not only lazy booking, it's also insulting to the audience. My guess is that either Vince himself or someone in creative threw out a cliche about blood being thicker than water, and that was that. Move on.

Here's what I would have done: Remember after Nikki turned heel when she did vignettes in which she talked about things Brie had done to her when they were younger, such as stealing Nikki's prom date and letting Nikki take the blame for a car accident that Brie was in? It came across like Nikki was lying about these events to make Brie look bad.

What if the night after Survivor Series, Brie said, "Everything that Nikki said about me was true. I'm a bitch. I've deserved everything that Nikki has done to me. Now we're even. We're back on the same page, and together we're unstoppable."

Now, as a viewer, I get it. I already disliked Nikki, and now I dislike Brie, too, for fooling me into thinking she was "the good one."

Just one promo could have taken care of a huge, gaping plot hole, but the powers that be apparently felt it wasn't worth the trouble.

Here's an idea for the Nikki vs. Naomi match for Nikki's Divas Championship Sunday at Extreme Rules that would clearly establish Nikki as the babyface and Naomi as the heel:

Before the match takes place, Naomi catches Nikki alone backstage and attacks her from behind, doing a number on Nikki's previously injured knee (announcers can bring forward Nikki's injury history in commentary).

Nikki goes into the match injured, but Naomi relentlessly goes after the bad knee. Nikki puts up a fight and refuses to give up, but eventually can't overcome the injury and loses the title.

To make it even more dramatic, you could have an emotional Brie at ringside cheering on her sister before eventually throwing in the towel to stop the match. Brie then goes to check on Nikki, and Naomi attacks Brie as well.

Now I have a reason to like the Bellas and dislike Naomi. And just to make sure viewers understand that Brie had no ulterior motive for throwing in the towel, Nikki should cut a promo saying that she knows Brie did it out of love and concern for her well-being.

That's how you give Divas a chance.

[silver]

Speaking of plot holes, are they going to explain why Bray Wyatt attacked Ryback? Or Ambrose 6 months ago? Other than creative drew two names out of a hat and now you're feuding.

[RealGunner]

Did Cena win clean at ER?

[Onyx]

BNB won King of the Ring. King Bad News Barrett.

[Onyx]

Rollins beat Ambrose clean wtf.

Smackdown spoilers:

Spoiler:

[Onyx]

Renee has her own show on the WWE network, just seen the first episode.

Mr Scrub who doesn't even lift was her first guest.

[Casciavit]

Isn't crossfit generally made fun of?

[Casciavit]

Rollins beat Ambrose clean wtf.

Smackdown spoilers:

Spoiler:

Big brother Reigns needing to help little brother Ambrose

*bleep* Vince.

[Rebaño Sagrado]

Rollins should be beating midcarders clean. I get the chicken shit heel thing, but he shouldnt need help to beat Ziggler and someone making their debut.

[Tomwin Lannister]

Yeah he's the WWE champ ffs, if he can't even beat average joes clean then his chicken shit act will get annoying, but for the wrong reasona.

[M99]

What does that say about Ambrose then if Rollins who can't beat Ziggler and Neville clean beats him clean.

Screw Vince. Probably pissed at Ambrose for getting organically over.

[Freeza]

Ambrose and Rollins should both be Main Eventing ffs Vince so mad

[Onyx]

Considering WWE want to be known as sports entertainment, it baffles me how they relegate all their legit entertainers (Ambrose, Sandow, Wyatt) to jobber status and give bland average joes who can barely cut a promo World titles and WM main events.

Seems as if all they care about nowadays is wrestling ability or da look.

You got mic skills, a personality and a character? Brb, we're going to make your a midcard comedy act.

[izzy]

Considering WWE want to be known as sports entertainment, it baffles me how they relegate all their legit entertainers (Ambrose, Sandow, Wyatt) to jobber status and give bland average joes who can barely cut a promo World titles and WM main events.

Side shots fired at Rollins and Reigns MT?

[Onyx]

Yeh, needed to fill my daily quota of Rollins and Reigns hate.

Anyway I really do think they rushed things when it came to pushing them. It's as if they thought just because the Shield did well as a group, they'd succeed as singles competitors instantly. When instead, each of them should have been built up gradually as midcarders. Rollins imo was only ever turned heel because he was the weakest booked out of the shield and they had to put him in the spotlight somehow. They probably thought he'd perish away in the midcard and become someone like Kofi and they couldn't let that happen to a group they've been hyping as the future for years.

[M99]

Well then why are they letting Ambrose perish in the midcard? He is the best out of them but has been booked the weakest.

[izzy]

Well then why are they letting Ambrose perish in the midcard? He is the best out of them but has been booked the weakest.

He probably said something out of turn.................. like Ziggler, Cesaro, BNB etc.

[silver]

Well in that case isn't Ambrose being built up gradually in midcard since he is a midcarder at the moment

[Onyx]

Well yeh he is now, but I don't think it's because they're intending to build him up gradually, but because they have nothing for him.

[Onyx]

Rg ffs, your dream come true. Cena male face, Lana female face of WWE.

We noted before that Vince McMahon is high up on Lana and has big plans for her push. The long-term plan right now is for Lana to be the female face of the company once her babyface turn has happened.

Vince reportedly feels that part of Lana's transition has to include the reveal that she's really American. The idea is to keep the Lana name but there's been some talk of using the name "CJ" as her real name is Catherine Jo Perry. The idea would be that "CJ" makes people think of a hot blonde because of Pamela Anderson's character in Baywatch.

Source: Wrestling Observer Newsletter

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